A fine and rare pair of celadon and gilt drum-shaped vases, seal marks and period of Qianlong (1736-1795)

27 mars 2020

A fine and rare pair of celadon and gilt drum-shaped vases, seal marks and period of Qianlong (1736-1795)

Lot 3081. A fine and rare pair of celadon and gilt drum-shaped vases, seal marks and period of Qianlong (1736-1795); 9.4 cm., 3 3/4 in. Estimate 5,000,000 — 7,000,000 HKD. Lot Sold 6,020,000 HKD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

each of barrel shape with straight sides slightly swelling around the middle, flanked by a pair of moulded animal mask handles securing mock rings, the flat top pierced with six circular holes with the central aperture slightly larger, finely painted over a celadon glaze in gilt enamel, the body with lotus flowerheads borne on scrolling leafy stems, below two shou characters, all set between bands at the top and bottom containing a foliate scroll and a row of studded bosses, the top with five bats encircling the central aperture and further scrolls, the countersunk base inscribed with a six-character reign mark in gilt, stands.

Exhibited: Oriental Ceramic Society, London, 1951, no. 56.

Note: It is rare to find celadon-glazed drum-form vases with the gilt-decoration so well preserved. It is also unusual to see Qianlong mark and period vessels of this form; although the type is known from slightly earlier, Yongzheng period, vases; for example see one sold in these rooms, 17th November 1975, lot 154; and another sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 31st March 1992, lot 574.

Compare a Qianlong mark and period celadon-glazed drum-form vase, but with an open top, illustrated in The Official Kiln Porcelain of the Qing Dynasty, Shanghai, 2003, pl. 344, from the Nanjing Museum; a pair of vases included in the exhibition Chinese Celadons and Other Related Wares in Southeast Asia, Singapore, 1979, pl. 224, nos. 271-272; and a single vessel from the Edward T. Chow collection sold in these rooms, 25th November 1980, lot 96.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, Hong Kong, 08 april 2011